Yearly Archives 2010

NEW YORK (JTA) — The following is a list of the 39 Jewish members — 12 senators and 27 representatives — who are expected to serve in the 112th U.S. Congress, which is set to convene in January: U.S. SENATE Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.)* Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.)** Benjamin Cardin (D-Md.)… Read more »

NEW YORK (JTA) — Three years ago, Tulane University seemed like fertile ground to grow a more robust Jewish studies program. Approximately one-third of the school’s 6,000 undergraduates are Jews, Tulane was in the early stages of an ambitious project to construct a new building for its Hillel center… Read more »

Gregory Schneider, executive vice presdient at the Claims Conference, together with the U.S. Attorneys Office announced the discovery of a $42.5 million fraud scheme, Nov. 9, 2010. Claims Conference)

NEW YORK (JTA) — The U.S. Attorney’s Office in New York has arrested 17 people for participating in a $42.5 million fraud at the Claims Conference. Those arrested include former and current employees of the Claims Conference, which distributes more than $400 million per year from the German government… Read more »

An all-time high of 600 college students took part in the 2010 General Assembly of the Jewish Federations of North America held in New Orleans, Nov. 7, 2010. (JFNA)

NEW ORLEANS, La. (JTA) – After three days of schmoozing, sessions and feel-good speeches, the 3,000 or so Jewish federation officials who came to the annual General Assembly may have left New Orleans feeling invigorated. The view expressed by many top officials was that after two years of a… Read more »

The political career of Sen. russ Feingold, shown on the campaign trail for Barack Obama in Eau Claire, Wis., in August 2008, was marked by a fierce independence. (Phil Freedman)

WASHINGTON (JTA) — The speech that Russ Feingold gave to end his career in the U.S. Senate was much like his career itself: by turns crystal clear, obscure, ornery, defiant and gracious — and quoting a fellow Great Plains Jew to boot. “But my heart is not weary, it’s… Read more »

Participants in the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure walk through the streets of Jerusalem on Oct. 28, 2010 to raise awareness about breast cancer. (Rose Inbal)

JERUSALEM (JTA) — Irit Paneth, in and out of remission from breast cancer for more than a decade, was among the thousands who wound their way like a giant pink-and-white ribbon through Jerusalem’s streets in the first Susan G. Komen Foundation’s Race for the Cure held in Israel. “What’s… Read more »

Sue Fishkoff

NEW YORK (Forward) — How did kosher certification grow so popular so fast? With Jews making up less than 2 percent of the country’s population, it seems certain that the answer is rooted in something other than increased religious observance. In her new book “Kosher Nation: Why More and… Read more »

Randy Altschuler, a Republican who holds a slim lead in his suburban New York congressional district, campaigning this summer with Rep. Eric Cantor, currently the only GOP Jewish lawmaker in the Congress. (Courtesy Randy Altschuler for Congress)

WASHINGTON (JTA) — The sharpest signal of what last week’s elections meant for Jews came not from Washington but from New Orleans, Nova Scotia and Australia. In New Orleans, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivered a speech Monday calling for moving beyond sanctions to mounting a “credible military threat”… Read more »

Providence Mayor David Cicilline, shown here welcoming the U.S. Army Band in July 2010, becomes the third openly gay Jewish member of the U.S. Congress with his Election Day victory. (Photo courtesy U.S. Army Band)

WASHINGTON (JTA) — A historic Republican sweep of the U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday has propelled Rep. Eric Cantor (R-Va.), the minority whip, to the verge of becoming the highest-ranking Jewish lawmaker in U.S. political history. “We are excited for Eric Cantor to become the next House Majority… Read more »

The board of directors of JEWISH FAMILY & CHILDREN’S SERVICES honored THE JEWISH FEDERATION OF SOUTHERN ARIZONA as its donor of the year at its annual meeting on Oct. 11. JFCS also inducted its 2011 board. Officers are Elizabeth Weiner-Schulman, chair; Jill Rosenzweig, chair-elect; Bruce Beyer, immediate past chair;… Read more »

RUTH ZALES will be honored as the Tucson recipient of the Kipnis-Wilson/Friedland Award during the 2010 International Lion of Judah Conference in New Orleans Nov. 8-10. In addition to her work with the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona’s Women’s Philanthropy, Zales is a member of Jewish Federations of North… Read more »

JARED DAVIDSON FRIEDMAN, son of Linda Friedman and Alan Friedman, will celebrate becoming a Bar Mitzvah on Saturday, Nov. 13 at Congregation Anshei Israel. He is the grandson of Brenna Davidson of Iowa City, Iowa, and Dixie Friedman and Don Friedman of Chicago, Ill. Jared attends Orange Grove Middle… Read more »

Members of the New Israel fund express their desires in two languages during Jon Stewarts Rally for Sanity in Washington, Oct. 30, 2010. NIF)

WASHINGTON (JTA) — When “Saturday Night Live” alum “Father Guido Sarducci,” delivering the benediction at Jon Stewart’s Rally to Restore Sanity, ran through a list of religions seeking the true faith, Judaism received the biggest applause. That didn’t surprise Rivka Burstein-Stern. “There were a lot of Jews there,” she… Read more »

Mordecai Dzikansky

In the 25 years that Mordecai Dzikansky worked as a homicide detective and intelligence officer for the New York Police Department, he risked his life every day to keep others safe. Except Saturday. Dzikansky, who became a cop in 1983 and retired recently, was among the few Orthodox Jews… Read more »

Geert Wilders, the rock star of European politics, is riding the crest of a populist tsunami. As the pro-Israel founder of Holland’s Party of Freedom let loose recently in Berlin, shouting that Islam is a threat to Germany’s identity, democracy and prosperity, his audience of 500 reacted with an… Read more »

There is a name for people who believe the Jews are entitled to a state of their own in the Land of Israel, who believe that the State of Israel is rightfully a Jewish state and should remain one. They are called “Zionists.” The new thing in Israel is… Read more »

With talks at a stalemate and no agreement from the Israelis to reinstate a settlement freeze, the Palestinians are playing a new card: an end game to statehood through an appeal to the international community. The card hasn’t actually been played, but the mere threat that the Palestinians would… Read more »

To our community: As Jews, we embrace politics because our parents and our grandparents taught us about the tragedies that can occur if we stay silent. Some of us are liberal. Some of us are conservative. Many of us are moderate. As Americans, we respect one another’s right to… Read more »

Despite our disagreement, I sincerely respect each of the individuals who replied to my letter. Our common ground is a shared love for Israel and patriotic zeal for the American institutions that guarantee our rights and liberties. Together, we live in a vibrant community that encourages thoughtful political discourse.… Read more »

When I read allegations of anti-Semitism being hurled at Jesse Kelly in Politico, I thought to myself, “politics as usual.” It’s a stretch to call Mr. Kelly an anti-Semite simply because he had accepted an endorsement from a notorious anti-immigrant group, ALIPAC. I believe he’s innocent of anti-Semitism. What… Read more »